A Guardian's Light
by VeeIs4Valence
Summary: The tale of a Warlock named Valence, who has a strange gift. How his Light is different from others, no one is positive. But one thing is for sure, he may just be the hero the Light needs.
1. Chapter 1: A Strange Awakening

_For my fellow Guardians._

 _Warlock is Master Class_

 _Do not trust anyone._

 _Do not trust Zavala, for he trusts the Speaker. Do not trust the Speaker, for he trusts the Traveler. Do not trust the Traveler._

 _Trust only your gun and your Ghost, for they are the only things that will stay with you to the end._

 _Why do I not trust the Traveler? Does a pawn trust the hand that moves it? Perhapse, yet... we are not pawns to be used nor are our lives a game. Besides, we have made the Traveler into a God, no? No God I've ever met is as pure as we make them out to be._

 _Trust me._

It is not everyday you are revived from the dead. Awaking from a mindless sleep, to a world of everything once more. Air floods back into my body and I rise to my feet. Greeted by sunlight and blue skies, my blurry vision clears for a floating light to grab my attention.

"Eyes up Guardian. I-I can't believe it... it worked! You're alive!" It exclaims, whirring and levitating about. I look down to my stiff hands, cracking each knuckle in an attempt to bend the joints. Why does everything feel as if brittle metal has replaced my bones and broken rubber for muscles? Am I caked in dirt and rust like the cars that surround me? When I died, did I too become a machine? My gaze rises again, looking at the bobbing light before me.

"I'm a Ghost... well- actually, now I'm you're Ghost. And you? Well, you've been dead a long time," the light says, twirling its extrusions about the dark centerpiece. Just as my Ghost reassembles itself, a strange roar-like cry echoes about the flat, deserted ruins of what appears to be a Russian facility.

"We're not safe here. We need to get you back to the Tower," Ghost explains, nervousness permeating its slightly robotic voice. I just have enough time to nod before another splitting cry, louder and closer, urges us towards the collapsing buildings. My aching body shrieks in agony as I sprint forward, weaving around carcasses of decaying cars so as to keep up with Ghost. I vault up the rusting metal stairs and turn through an empty doorway to be led into a darkened corridor. Just as I'm about to ask where we are, Ghost disappears from sight in a flash of light.

"Don't worry," I hear him say, presumably from within my helmet. "I'm still with you. We need to keep moving."

"What is this place?" I ask, jogging through the interior of the building. Ghost seems slightly surprised by this question.

"You don't know? We're in the Cosmodrome, Old Russia," Ghost states. "You seriously don't remember?"

"Well, I know this is Russian, but from the text. I know who I am, and I know that that is a wall, that is a brick and so on. But I have no recollection of this place, as a concrete memory per se," I respond. This puzzles me greatly. My mind is blank, like a blank piece of paper. I know how to write with words on this paper; I know what things are and what should be on the paper, yet it's still blank. As I continue to ponder this strange predicament, we enter a large, dark room.

"Hold on, I'll get us some light," Ghost assures, blinking into existence before floating off.

"Don't go too far, Ghost. I don't like the looks of this place," I warn. Ghost stops suddenly, looking back at me. It sort of nods, dipping slightly, before returning to attempting to turn on some lights, projecting a sort of laser grid on the beaten control panels. With a surge of energy, the lights snap on in rapid succession, illuminating the large warehouse and revealing strange, humanoid creatures crawling along the fallen girders. They wore blue and red armor, with yellow straw like hair. Some had four arms, each armed with a fierce looking firearm. I turned immediately to Ghost, conflicted between saying _I told you so_ , _What did you do_ , or _Run!_ Thankfully, I didn't have to choose.

"Quick! I found an old gun over here! Grab it!" Ghost quickly screech-whirrs, disappearing back into my helmet once again. I lunge forward for an old Khvostov 7G-02 leaning against some old crates, pulling back on the old action, forcing it back to life. The click of ammo sliding into place gave me some reassurance as I darted around the walkways and back into the darkened corridors. As I finally slowed and raised the sights to my eye, I noticed the sudden change of décor. Instead of the crumbling concrete walls, strange bulbous boxes covered in nets occupied every corner. Large light sticks were forced into the ground, poorly illuminating the hall with eerie orange light.

"What were those things?" I inquired, lowering the gun back to my hip.

"Fallen, one of the many races of the Darkness. They invaded Earth centuries ago, but it seems they have a better hold on this place than I thought. We need to get you back to the Tower. You'll be safe there," Ghost clarified before falling silent once more. I walked tentatively forward, sensing something was about to happen. My suspicions were confirmed when a handful of Fallen dropped from broken tiles in the ceiling, screaming the strange cries we heard from outside. I brought the sights back up and pulled the trigger, gritting my teeth trying to control the recoil. Their bodies dropped at my feet, dark blood splattering over the floor. One of the Fallen from the back ran up to me, swinging a blade at my face. I ducked, retaliating by outstretching my arm. A surge of dark purple energy swirled around my arm and exploded from my palm, sending the Fallen foot soldier flying backwards and disintegrating him in what I could only describe as the Void. I stepped back, looking at the dead Fallen at my feet.

"How did you do that?" Ghost asked.

"Well, I pointed the gun and held down the tr-" I began before being cut off.

"No, with that one Dreg. You initiated a Void power. No Warlock, not even Ikora have been able to do that with such little time as a Guardian. How did you do that?" Ghost inquired once more, shock obvious. I just could only shrug.

"I don't know. I just kind of went to punch the uh, Dreg, but something else forced my arm out instead," I mumbled, not really sure myself how exactly it happened.

"If there wasn't enough incentive before, we need to get you to the Tower. Maybe Ikora or Eris will know what happened," Ghost declared. I nodded again and started forward once more. The darkness and deafening silence only accentuated my heavy breathing and limbs, fatigue threatening to drag me to my knees. Not even the adrenaline that was still pumping through my veins could keep me up for much longer. We needed to get to this "Tower", and fast, before I collapse of exhaustion and the Fallen get to me.

"Ghost, I don't think I can go much further," I pant, bending over to catch my breath.

"I'm sensing a Jump Ship close by. We just need to get you there and I'll take care of the rest. Just a little further and-" Ghost began before another growling screech echoed throughout the building. Yet this cry was deeper and much coarser, like the roar of a lion. I didn't need to know what made it to know that I needed to start running. My breath burned at the base of my lungs as I forced oxygen into my body, running through hall after hall, following Ghost's directions. We enter an area where a spaceship is tangled in cords, hanging from the caved in ceiling. I gasp in relief, taking a step forward, only to be knocked from my feet by a bone rattling explosion behind me. I flip onto my back to see a large Fallen, surrounded by Dregs. It has a large canon with four barrels, each aimed directly at me.

"Ghost!" I shout. The little ball of light appears in front of me, only to spin about in shock and zoom behind me.

"A Captain! We need to get that Jump Ship working, now!" It yelps. My Khvostov is quickly in my hands again and I'm unloading the magazine into the Captain. It points at me with one of its arms and roars once more. The Dregs advance, shooting blue arcing bullets at me. I scramble to my feet, taking steps backwards so as not to get hit. The Captain takes aim once more and I can see the orange glow begin to grow.

"Ghost! Today would be nice!" I manage to holler before diving out of the way of another explosion. This explosion rocks the ship, some of the cables snapping and rocks falling from the gaping hole in the roof. I crouch behind one of the larger chunks, panting. I try and peek out from behind and take a few pot shots, but I'm just met by a volley of shots. I close my eyes and exhale slowly, letting my head fall backwards. I nod once to myself and vault out from behind my cover, not even caring where I'm aiming, hoping to buy time. The Captain lets out what I assume as a laugh, firing rockets in my direction. I leap as high as I can, evading almost all the rockets. Unfortunately for me, one of the rockets nails me in the leg, instantly fracturing it. I growl in pain, falling to the ground on my knees. The Captain laughs again, making me even angrier. I bellow out in rage and pain, dragging myself to my feet once more and firing right at the Captain. He stumbles backward, dropping the cannon and shaking his head. I take this opportunity to line up that perfect shot.

"C'mon you bastard, look up," I growl beneath my breath, ready for the headshot. I feel my leg getting worse. Ghost better hurry up or my leg won't be the only thing that is broken. The Captain rights himself, only to be struck in the face by the rest of my mag, killing him. The blood from the Fallen has turned the floor a dark blue, the Captain falling to the ground and splattering the gore everywhere. I whoop in victory, raising my gun above my head. The engines of the Jump Ship roar behind me. Before I can say any snarky remarks, my knees give way and I black out, falling to the floor.

When I regain consciousness, I am reclining in the seat of what I assume is the spaceship, my helmet on the floor and my leg wrapped in bandages. Ghost is hovering above my broken leg, doing that weird laser grid thing, hovering about in a tizzy. I groan and shift in my seat, weaving my hand into my silver hair. Everything hurts. Even the hurting hurts.

"Oh, good. You finally woke up," Ghost says absent-mindedly. "I'm just running some scans on your leg before I regenerate the bone and tissue." The bandages undo themselves and fall to the floor, exposing my pale blue skin. I can see the bruise already starting to bloom, a nasty purple and deep blue. Hopefully, that would go away when Ghost regenerates me. I take this chance to look around the interior of the spaceship, taking in my surroundings. It was in pretty good shape for a crashed Jump Ship, relatively clean and everything seemed to work. The large windscreen was filled with vast blue and rolling clouds, traipsing past us as we traveled through the skies. The glowing ice blue eyes of my reflection stared back at me as I gaped at the marvel.

"Woah," I breathed, struggling to sit up a bit more. Ghost whirred in annoyance, struggling to keep the bone from getting more damaged. I grimace as hot pain shoots up my leg, forcing me back into the seat.

"Hold still. We need to get you all patched up before we reach the Tower. Commander Zavala prefers his Guardians undamaged," Ghost protests, focusing on my leg once more. I snort and roll my eyes.

"This Zavala sounds like a real peachy guy," I snigger. Ghost sighs and lets out a reluctant chuckle.

"I wouldn't talk about him that way. He's the head of the Vanguard, commands all the Guardians and is the Titan trainer. He is not a guy you want to mess with," Ghost describes, rolling his eye to match. I just shrug and pull my long hair up behind my neck, sighing at the familiar feeling. Familiar how, I'm not sure, but it feels good and relaxing, which I can totally get behind right now. My long bangs fall in front of my left eye again, making dark columns across half of my vision.

"So what is the Tower anyway?" I ask as Ghost finally floats backwards, signally my leg is good to go. I sit up and cross my legs, happy with the lack of pain that this causes. Ghost dips down to rest on the dash of the ship, looking at me lazily.

"The Tower is in the Last City, the last safe city on Earth... or anywhere really. The Tower is where everyone dedicated to protecting it stays. The Vanguard, The Speaker and all the different merchants hang around there. Guardians stay in the Tower," Ghost clarifies.

"The last safe city? Anywhere?" I murmur in disbelief. Is that even possible? In the entire universe, only one city remains safe?

"Ever since the Collapse, the Darkness has been stronger than ever, and with the Traveler gone silent, the Guardians are our last hope at protecting the City," Ghost confirmed dejectedly. I nod solemnly, staring out the window to the sky. Somehow, it doesn't seem as vast and beautiful, but isolated and trapping. Soon, Ghost notified that we were approaching the Tower. I feel our altitude lower and we break the bottom of the clouds. Below us a huge sprawling city lit with a rainbow of lights is revealed, surrounded by majestic mountains. In the center of it all, a huge orb of pure white floats above, casting a shadow on the central city blocks.

"That's the Traveller. Before the Collapse, the Traveller spurred on the biggest technology advancement in history and protected all of humanity. Now, this is all it can protect," Ghost illuminates. I manually pull the ship down lower, pulling up to the main terrace of the Tower.

"I'm going to teleport you down there, Amanda Holliday will take care of the ship," Ghost explains, before my vision is blinded by light. I drop to my feet on the walkway in the Tower, straightening out.

"Welcome to the Tower," I hear Ghost say.


	2. Chapter 2: A Valence For Everything

"So this is the Tower?" I ask in awe. Guardians were everywhere, meandering about the hub area. Conversations flew about on the wind like feathers, I could reach out and watch them drift through my fingertips. Guardians were clustered around a vendor to my right, some cheering and others cursing beneath their breaths. The vendor, an awoken male in a hooded robe, looked extremely pleased as he held crystalline glowing dodecahedrons in his hands. A little further an Exo male stood before racks of guns, lining the walls. He seemed to be lazily conversing with a small female Human Guardian, pointing to different parts of a nasty looking shotgun. To my left, a concrete booth displayed a glowing holo-board, boasting a large _Emberverse_ logo. Within another compartment in the same building, a droid speaking to a handful of Guardians, handing packages about and fretting slightly. My glowing eyes can barely handle all of it, devouring everything like a pair of starved animals. Banners of red and blue were hung above pillars crested with ivy and budding flowers, staggering the stairs. I reach out to touch one, gloved fingers running over the rough surface.

"Well go on, you aren't planning to stand there all day, are you?" Ghost mocks, appearing briefly in a brilliant flash of light. I roll my eyes and bound up the stairs, approaching the stairwell that descends to where I assume the Vanguard reside. After taking the steps two at a time, I pause to look at the large crest that is chiseled into the wall. Each motif of the classes joined together on a shield, surrounded by circle, which I assume represents the Traveller. Nodding slightly, I resume my trek, taking the left passage. I look to my right, seeing a strange woman hunched over a glowing orb, muttering strange phrases. I pause on the staircase, observing the little station she's constructed, a large cauldron overflowing with green light and an eerie looking skull on stacks of books.

"That's Eris Morn. She was captured by the Hive a long while back, losing her Ghost. She's… she's a little strange," Ghost whispers, floating slightly behind me. Her head snaps up, turning to look at me. I take a step back, releasing the handrail in surprise. Three glowing eyes shrouded by bandages stared at me, black trails of tears flowing down her pale face.

"A new Guardian approaches," Eris' voice is strangely strong, not like the whispery muttering we heard before.

"S-Sorry for disturbing you. I just got here and, uh, I'm still getting used to e-everything," I stutter, rubbing the back of my neck abashedly. Eris cocks her head to the side, reaching out slightly with one of her hands. I look at Ghost, motioning slightly with my eyes. He just bobs up and down, in what I assume is a shrug. I assume a lot of stuff.

"The Light is different around you Guardian. More powerful, yet… more primal. Your Light is not pure and white like the others who surround us. You have greys in you… like the Darkness has seen your power and tried to take it. But you made the Darkness your own, became one with the Grey, and it fled," she hums, coming closer to the railway. My back is against the wall now, not sure if I should be confused or scared. From what I've heard, the Darkness is not something I want to have any part of, even if it high tailed it out of there.

"Ugh, thank you?" I respond, inching towards the bottom of the stairs, ready to run. Eris nods, and I swear I almost heard her chuckling beneath her breath.

"You will return Guardian," Eris just bobs her head and goes back to muttering to her orb. I sneak a glance at Ghost again, who is rotating around his center again, probably slightly uncomfortable. I don't blame him. I nod again, clearing my head, before continuing down the hall.

"That's Lord Shaax, he runs the Crucible. The Crucible is where Guardians who have a little time go to hone their skills against one another and get rewards," Ghost informs. Lord Shaax gives me a nod from where he stands. I give a small wave, hoping I don't look too scrawny compared to his robust figure. I reached the end of the hall to be greeted by a long table with three figures nose deep in different documents.

"Introducing Ikora Rey, the Warlock Vanguard, Cayde-6, the Hunter Vanguard and Commander Zavala, the Titan Vanguard," Ghost announced formally… and loudly for that matter. The Awoken male, Human female and Exo male all turned to look at me, eyes bright and staring. After a moment of awkward staring and me squirming under their gaze, the Exo spoke up, the orange glow in the back of his throat blooming.

"Well, c'mon then. We don't bite… often," he jokes. The Awoken male, Commander Zavala by the looks of it, groans and rubs his eyes. I robotically walk down the steps and toward the table.

"So you're the new Warlock your Ghost has been telling us about," Ikora Rey said. "Your one of mine then. Welcome to the Tower."

"Thanks. Uh, Ghost?" I mutter, looking to Ghost for help. People are hard to talk to, especially since… you know… I've been dead for a while. Ghost just sighs and floats forward, rolling its eye at me as it passes.

"Before you assign us any missions, we have a question for you Ikora," Ghost sighs.

"Go on," Ikora responds.

"Have there ever been any cases where a Guardian or Warlock could wield a Light Power immediately after being resurrected for the first time?" Ghost inquires. Ikora raises an eyebrow, curious.

"What makes you ask?" Ikora asks.

"No Guardian in history has been able to use a Light Power after being resurrected for the first time," Cayde-6 assured. Ghost and I shared a curious glance.

"What about a Guardian who can use both Darkness and Light together? Like in a sort of… uh, Grey?" This time I spoke, quoting Eris Morn. The Vanguard shared a worried glance.

"You know what, never mind," Ghost quickly butted in, laughing nervously. Commander Zavala and Ikora Rey nod slowly and go back reading through their documents. I notice Cayde-6 waving me over subtly. Slowly, I walk over, careful not to disturb the two working.

"Hey, I, uh, never got your name," Cayde-6 requested. I'm slightly taken aback. Everyone has just called me Guardian, never really asking for a name. What is my name?

"Uh, I don't have one. Or if I did, I don't remember," I told Cayde-6. This surprised him.

"You don't remember your name? Well… that's all right I suppose. Just make one up. For you," Cayde-6 shrugged. I thought for a second. What describes me? I finally settle on something… melancholy I guess describes it. On reflection, it feels right, as if that were my previous name or I'd been called it before.

"Valence. My name is Valence," I affirm. It feels good, a tingly feeling.

"Valence, eh? I'll just call you Vee. I'm Cayde-6, but everyone calls me Cayde," Cayde introduces, sticking out his hand. I grab it and give it a firm shake, the pla-steel plating of his face bending into a grin.

"Nice to meet you Cayde," I respond, mirroring his grin.

"If you two boyfriends are done, I need to talk to my Guardian," Ghost drawls, whirring about. I roll my eyes and excuse myself, exiting the hall.

"What is it, you sarcastic twit?" I snap, slightly annoyed at Ghost for being such a jerk when I've just made the first friend since I died. Ghost floats about, snickering.

"Well, we need a Warp Drive if you want to get anywhere further than Earth. The Cosmodrome is the only place I know where we might find one," Ghost informs, his tone still slightly snarky. I nod and begin to summon my ship.

"What are we waiting for? Let's get that Warp Drive!" I exclaim, disappearing in a shimmering silvery light.


	3. Chapter 3: Bombshell

The wind had turned crisp in the short time I had spent at the tower, nipping at my tense fingers that were wrapped around my gun. I readjusted it in my hands, hoping to allow some blood back into my digits. The Cosmodrome was eerily silent, not even the chirp of a stray bird to pierce the stillness. My eyes scanned the landscape, regularly flitting to the radar display in my helmet, devoid of movement.

"It's very quiet," I mumble, taking large strides up to the downed Guardian ship. I jostled the gun once again, suddenly hoping to grab some engrams for a better firearm, hopefully one with a little more power. Ghost just buzzed inside my helmet, anxious to get going. I bring him out into my palm and push him towards the wreck of the ship, turning about so as to stand guard.

"The ship's systems are completely catatonic, but I can cull its last transmission," Ghost informs as he twirls back towards me. A garbled noise of what I assume are voices blasts into my helmet before reaching a crescendo into static. I can barely understand the words, but Ghost seems to understand perfectly.

"They managed to bring a system online underground. I'll bring the objective up in your visor," Ghost continues, disappearing back into my helmet.

"So we aren't going to acknowledge the creepy lack of Fallen? Judging from how worried you were before on their hold on this place, shouldn't you be a teensy bit concerned about this?" I ask, jogging towards the objective indicator.

"Reports say something has awoken the Hive in the Earth, causing multiple skirmishes between the two forces. It's likely they killed each other out and reinforcements have yet to be sent," Ghost shrugged, seeming nonchalant, yet I can't help but feel he is just as on edge.

"The Hive?" I inquire as we head deeper into the compound. I can feel Ghost shudder.

"Agents of the Darkness, but evil like you couldn't imagine. Their agents use the Darkness like Guardians can use the like, harnessing dark magic and unimaginable power," Ghost warns. We enter a type of command room, illuminated by a glowing turquois holo-map. Ghost phases in next to me, spinning about the dark core. He floats a little closer, quickly scanning the laser grid on the controls to get the bytes of information.

"A map of the entire Cosmodrome…" Ghost gasps, buzzing in excitement. I gasp, eyes widening in wonder. Judging by the size of the map, the Cosmodrome covers the size of a small state!

"Whoa, I didn't realize how large the Cosmodrome really was," I admit, brushing the wall with the tips of my fingers.

"We need to go back to were we found the jump ship, that's were we'll find the warp drive," Ghost nods, disappearing back into my helmet. I readjust the gun in my hands and climb the stairs back out into the Cosmodrome. The orange sun is just beginning to set on the quiet horizon, creating a shimmering halo around the tops of far off mountains. I silently promise myself that one day, when this war is over, I'll help take the Earth back from the Darkness. I'll get to climb those mountains; I'll hike through the forests… I'll see it all.

Ghost and I arrive at the entrance of the building, buckling steel steps rise to the gaping hole we ripped apart in our hasty escape. I grin slightly, every Guardian made their mark when they came back, and this was mine. A large gaping hole that probably structurally compromised the building, sure, but it was my destructive mark. I take sure steps up the rusting stairs, letting my large boots make noisy clangs that echo around the still deserted foothills. The blood of the Fallen is still visibly splattered about the walls and floor of the building, dark and dry from the time I busted some extra holes in those Dregs. The absence of their bodies surprised me though, as I thought the Fallen would abandon their dead, not take them for some burial. Then again, the crows may have got to them before anyone else could. I rip my eyes from the bloodstains and push through the shattered doors, kicking the one hanging from its hinges to join its pair. The crisp air turns humid and stale as we trek further, my knuckles going sore from gripping my gun. The final rays of sun hit my back and I give them a wordless goodbye, slowing for a moment to feel the warmth seep through the heavy coat Ikora gave me on my way out of the Tower.

Ghost and I come to an area that seemed to have been a garage once, a large hole bored into the furthest wall. A group of Dregs, along with some four-armed Fallen and floating sentry drones, are clustered in the center of the area, avoiding the murky puddles.

"You haven't fought Vandals or Shanks yet, but I'm sure you'll be fine," Ghost reassures, slightly too loud for my tastes, but the Fallen don't seem to notice. I nod slightly and ready my gun, aiming down the sights and lining up a shot. The bullets ring out, popping the head off the Vandal. The remaining Fallen whip around to stare at me, raising their arms above their hands and roaring, sending arcing blue bullets my way. I gulp and start firing, watching as the Fallen drop to the ground, Shanks whirring desperately before exploding.

"I don't want to fight them, I don- aaaaaaAAAAAAaHH!" I shriek as a Vandal leaps for me, electrified knife outstretched. I duck behind the pillar behind the loading doors and crouch, hearing the knife scratch along the metal wall. I jump to my feet once again and lean out around the pillar, shoving my outstretched hand into the Vandal's face, a burst of purple energy launching him backwards and crashing into his comrades. My barrel seems to lift on its own and I'm firing into the dazed group of Fallen, each falling limp and collapsing in their panicked tangle.

"That felt unfair, they could barely take a step," I panted as the final Dreg fell. Ghost hummed in amusement.

"Not wanting to fight? Unfair? You are a strange one Guardian," Ghost chortles. I scrunch up my nose, annoyed. I can't rebut though, as a large Captain emerges through the hole in the wall, roaring loudly as more Dregs and Shanks fill in behind him.

"Unfair now?" Ghost snorts. I grit my teeth and raise my gun. The Captain points at me and roars. I audibly growl at him, rolling my shoulders and narrowing my eyes. The volley of bullets hit me in the chest, making my vision blank slightly as I leap around the area, returning fire. My gun clicked as I held down the trigger, forcing me to duck behind cover as I shove more bullets into the action.

"Ghost, any grenades? Machine guns? Rocket launchers? Heavy artillery?" I ask, picking off the Dregs and Shanks. Ghost seems to nervously chuckle.

"Everyone goes at least this long without them," Ghost whirrs. I groan and lean out from behind the pillar, strafing left as I nail the Captain. He roars, flailing his arms. I run up while he's disoriented, feeling the strange energy welling up in the back of my mind again. I bring my fist back and concentrate on the energy, willing it into a concentrated strike. Dropping my gun, I leap up and crash my fist into the Captain's face, watching as the Void energy explodes around him. I land in a roll, listening as the Captain's corpse hits the ground behind me. I stand and summon Ghost, leading him out of my palm and towards the fallen Captain. He scans the Captain quickly, before a little circular part appears in his laser grid, levitating in front of him.

"And we've got a warp drive," he exclaims, rotating above my head in excitement. I pump my arm in victory and ask Ghost to teleport us back to the ship. Ghost nods and I feel that tingly feeling of teleportation spreads around me.

Back in my ship, I relax as I watch Ghost install the warp drive just outside the windscreen. We are hovering lazily above the forests, Ghost doing the preliminary installation before we hand the ship over to Amanda Holliday for final installation and a tune up.

"Almost done," Ghost's robotic voice comes through the radio in my ship. I nod and my wind returns to wandering with the fluffy clouds, watching the bright white vapor meander around the sky. My mind returns to the Tower, floating around the terraces and admiring the view of the Tower. I hum slightly, leaning into my palm as I remember the Vanguard. Zavala, he's a nice guy I suppose, but honestly it feels like he always has a stick up his ass. Ikora Rey, as my personal Vanguard she is very kind to me, but I've seen the wrath of her fury. And Cayde-6… I sigh.

"Well if you're done daydreaming about your boyfriend, we can get back to the Tower," Ghost snaps mechanically, causing me to jump in my seat. I guess I was thinking out loud and I rubbed the back of my neck sheepishly. Ghost sighs and whirrs, rolling his eye as I engage the hyper drive. The clouds blur around us as we speed up, soaring closer towards the Traveller that is rapidly growing on the horizon.

"He's not my boyfriend, I literally just met him. Like, chill Ghost," I grumble, pulling into the hangar in the tower. I see Amanda Holliday waving us in, a couple of maintenance droids trailing behind her. I shoot a sharp look at Ghost, making him whir and huff, but effectively shutting him up. I teleport out of the jumpship and take a couple bouncy strides towards Amanda, smiling.

"Hey there hot stuff, how's the hunk of junk holding up?" Amanda jokes, grabbing my hand and bumping shoulders.

"Pretty well, considering you fixed her up," I retort, sticking my tongue out. She laughs, waving me to the side as the maintenance droids march over to my ship. I follow her up to her usual post, jumping up to sit beside her on her crate. We chitchat a bit about stuff, about how the Hive is making a comeback, new ships and such. We have been chatting for a good half hour when a little purple Ghost approaches us. The conversation falters as the little Ghost clears its throat.

"Mr. Valence, Ikora Rey and the Vanguard request your presence in the Hall of Guardians," the Ghost says formally, dipping. I look at Amanda and gulp slightly, glancing at the impatient Ghost.

"Well, you better see what they want," Amanda nods, giving a supporting smile. I slip off the crate and follow the Ghost, weaving through the Guardians who dot the halls and gardens. My gait slows to a halt as I see the Vanguard all standing at the end of the long table, looking at me uncomfortably.

"Oooh, you in trouble!" Ghost mocks from my headset. I just gulp and take an unsure step towards the trio. Every face looks solemn as I approach them unsteadily. I stop just below the staircase in the room, trying to meet their eyes. Zavala's glowing irises burn into my forehead as I freeze in my boots.

"Uh, hi?" I try to say, but it comes out as a mumbled "shmuuurr?". _Smooth,_ Ghost says in my head. I refrain from rolling my eyes.

"Guardian. We need to speak with you," Ikora states, taking calculated steps backwards to her normal post around the table. Commander Zavala follows suit, but Cayde stays planted in his spot.

"Did I do something wrong?" I draw out the last word, wincing at the thought. If Ikora didn't rip me apart with a rusty knife, Zavala would skin me alive and wear me as a coat.

"Do you remember that question your Ghost asked us? About Guardians who could use Light abilities immediately after revival?" Commander Zavala inquires. I nod slowly.

"Well, we were checking through the old archives recently and something caught my eye. Something about an old legend," Cayde continued, returning to his map and leaning against the lip of the table, twirling a knife in his hand.

"An old prophecy the Speaker recorded just after the Collapse…" Ikora explains. "One about a Guardian who could wield the Light of all types, even other classes, all at once."

"A prophecy that spoke of a Guardian who could also use the Darkness just as well… someone who could be the savior or destroyer of the Light. Someone, who would become the Ruler of the Darkness or the Herald of the Traveller," Zavala spoke gravely. I felt the blood drain from my face. Someone who could become the Ruler of the Darkness?

"We've spoken with Eris Morn, and we have drawn the conclusion…" Ikora looks at Zavala. He nods.

"We think the Guardian the prophecy spoke of is you," Cayde finished. I inhaled sharply as the trio's gaze fell on me once more. Me?


End file.
